OREANDA-NEWS. Gazprom Neft has begun construction of a 96MW projected-capacity gas turbine power plant (GTPP), capable of being scaled up to a total capacity of 144MW, at the Novoportovskoye field, set to become one of the largest in the Yamal Peninsula. First-phase commissioning of an initial 48MW capacity will be launched at the end of 2016.

Site preparation and initial engineering is currently ongoing prior to construction of the facility, the total footprint of which will cover some 11 hectares. The plant will be built around six 16MW gas turbine generators, designed and custom-made to order for project operator Gazprom Neft Novy Port — factory testing having been successfully completed at Russian producer ODK Gas Turbines in January.

The plant can run on both natural and associated petroleum gas (APG), and will provide power for infrastructure facilities for the extraction, transportation and storage of hydrocarbons, as well as for the terminal currently being built in Cape Kammeny for the year-round shipment of oil. Construction of a 98-kilometre 110kW electricity transmission line, allowing an energy supply from the field to the coast, is planned by the end of 2016. The plant is expected to reach its planned 96MW capacity in mid-2017.

Gazprom Neft Novy Port CEO Sergey Biryukov commented: “The key characteristics of the Novoportovskoye field are its remoteness from operational infrastructure, and the harsh climatic conditions typical of the Arctic. This new power plant resolves the problem of insufficient energy capacity, ensuring a stable and reliable energy supply to various project facilities and enhancing the industrial safety of these.”

Power supplies to the Novoportovskoye project are currently secured through gas and diesel generators. The cost-effectiveness of these in terms of their off-grid operation is less than that of a gas turbine power plant.

The key facilities at the plant will be two turbine halls, a gas treatment system, a boiler room, an emergency diesel electric power station, and 25MVA-capacity transformers.

The Novoportovskoye field is one of the most significant oil and gas condensate fields currently under development in the Yamal Peninsula. It is located within the Arctic Circle, some distance from pipeline transportation infrastructure: shipments by sea from Cape Kammeny have been identified as the optimum solution for the transportation of crude, in these circumstances. Oil is currently transported to the coast through a 100-kilometre pressure-pipeline, with a capacity of 600,000 tonnes per year. In January the company commenced construction of the second section of this pressure pipeline which will, ultimately, allow the transportation of up to 5.5. million tonnes of oil per year. Once pipeline capacity has been increased, and construction of an oil-loading terminal completed, transportation of Novy Port oil by sea will take place year-round. Commercial production at the Novoportovskoye field will commence in 2016.